Revenge is a Sweet Thing
by Yoho81
Summary: While investigating the murders of two marines, Palmer is shot by one of the victim's wives, thinking that Palmer was the killer. Gibbs and the team now must rush to find the killer and the shooter before they strike again.
1. Prologue

**Title: Revenge is a Sweet Thing**

**Author: Yoho81**

**Disclaimer: All NCIS characters belong to CBS; they do not belong to me.**

**Prologue**

"Hurry up you slow poke!" Marissa Johnson yelled playfully at her boyfriend, Sean, as they hiked thorough Shenandoah State Park.

"God slow down, Marissa, I'm going to have a heart attack!" Sean yelled back, clutching his chest and breathing hard.

"Why are you so slow?" Marissa said.

"Why did you have to pick the hardest damn hike in Virginia?" Sean asked as Marissa laughed and ran up over the next hill. _God, _he thought warily, _I got to lose some weight!_ Just then, he heard a sickening scream come from over the hill.

"Marissa!" He yelled, adrenaline rushing as he ran, slowly, up the hill.

"Marissa!" He said as he stopped to catch his breath. He saw her sitting on the ground, sobbing and shaking uncontrollably.

"Marissa! Are you okay? What happened?" Sean asked with concern. All she could do was point a short distance away, behind a tree.

"I don't see what's wrong, there's nothing the-" he stopped all of the sudden and fell back. There behind the tree was a dead man in a sailor's uniform with a single gunshot wound to his heart.

"Dear God," Sean whispered.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Anthony DiNozzo hated Mondays, particularly this one. For starters, that weekend his girlfriend had dumped him. Second, he had a _ton_ of paperwork from the last case. And third, he had a splitting headache from drinking too much on Sunday. He stepped out of the elevator and trudged over to his desk where a smiling McGee and David were sitting.

"How was your weekend, Tony?" ex-Mossad Officer Ziva David asked, a huge grin on her face.

"I don't want to talk about it," he said as he threw down his bag and slid into his chair.

"Aww… what's wrong DiNozzo?" Special Agent Timothy McGee asked mockingly, "Have a bad weekend.

"Can it McGeek," Tony snapped.

"Well Tony, I hope you're happy to know I had a wonderful weekend," McGee said.

"Yes, McGee was telling me all about his date," Ziva said. Tony suddenly perked up.

"You McGoo, with a date," Tony said.

"Are you surprised, Tony?" Tim asked.

`"Not as much as I am shocked, McGee," said Tony.

"Why's that?" McGee asked.

"'Cause DiNozzo didn't have one and you did McGee," said a gruff and familiar voice behind them.

"That is not true!" Tony quickly defended himself, "I just happened to have a date this weekend, it just ended badly."

"Whatever you say Tony," Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs said, "C'mon, pack up your gear, we have a dead marine in Shenandoah State Park."

"On it boss," Tony said, quickly swallowing an Advil® and grabbing his backpack, ignoring the now grinning McGee. "Not a word," he said, flashing a glance at both Ziva and McGee.

"Whatever you say Tony," McGee said, stifling a laugh. Tony then went on to slap McGee on the back off the head as the doors closed.

They arrived at the crime scene with the Metro Police swarming all over. A Metro cop walked up to Gibbs and his team as they approached.

"Agent Gibbs, NCIS," Gibbs said, holding up his badge to the man.

"I expected you guys to be here," the man said, "Detective Ron Simmers, Metro Police."

"What do ya' got?" Asked Gibbs.

"A dead Navel Officer by the name of Lt. John Reed found here a few hours ago by two hikers. A single gunshot to the heart is what killed him," the detective said.

"Thanks," Gibbs said, and dismissed the man. "McGee, take photos. Ziva, talk to the people who discovered the body," Gibbs ordered, pointing Ziva to the hikers, "DiNozzo, sketch the crime scene. I'll wait for Ducky." The three agents nodded and began to work.

"Mr. Palmer, didn't you ever learn how to read a map? Or where North and South are?" An old Scottish voice said loudly.

"Uh… Dr. Mallard, you're the one who was holding the map," Medical Examiner Assistant Jimmy Palmer said.

"And I told you to go North and you went West," Head Medical Examiner Dr. Mallard said.

"But…" Palmer stuttered.

"Today Duck," Gibbs called as his old friend and Palmer approached the crime scene.

"Sorry we're late Jethro, but my assistant cannot read a map," Ducky said, glaring at Palmer. "So, what do we have here…"

"A dead Lt. by the name of John Reed, discovered dead this morning by a couple of hikers," Gibbs said.

"Yes, well, better get started," Ducky said, peering over the poor man.

She watched the old man bend over her precious Johnny, sticking something into his side. The man with the grey hair walked back over to Johnny and the old man. Then she saw him, the bastard who killed Johnny.

"I need a time of death, Ducky," Gibbs said impatiently as Dr. Mallard pulled the liver probe from the corpse.

"Roughly 24 hours ago," Ducky reported.

"That's good work Duck," Gibbs said turning away, only to run into a Metro Police detective.

"Agent Gibbs, we found another body about a half mile away from here. We think it may be another naval officer," the man said, breathing hard.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Alright, we'll be right there," Gibbs said. "Duck, you need to hurry up with this one."

"Give me a break Jethro, I just started on this body and you expect me to be done already? What reason would you or Metro Police have that would make me leave this poor fellow so soon?" Ducky asked.

"We got another body about a half mile due west," Gibbs said.

"Oh, well, that is a good excuse. I'll be right there, just give me a moment," Ducky said. Gibbs smiled and went to go brief his agents.

"Mr. Palmer," Ducky said, turning towards his young assistant, "Would you finish up here? There's another body and Gibbs wants me to go check it out."

"By myself Doctor Mallard," Jimmy said, surprised and excited at the same time.

"Well, yes of course," Ducky said, "I'll be right back Jimmy. Keep an eye on our Lt., would you?"

"Yes of course, Dr. Mallard… whatever you say…" Jimmy stuttered.

"Alright, off I go then," the old ME said, standing up and walking towards Gibbs. Palmer could hardly stand it. He ran to the truck to get the gurney and in the haste to get back he nearly knocked over Agent DiNozzo.

"Watch it Palmer!" Tony snapped.

"So-sorry Tony," Jimmy said, his excitement slightly diminished, "What are you doing here?"

"Ducky said for me to keep an eye on you because of what happened last time he wasn't here and you were left alone with a body," Tony said. Palmer shuddered, remembering. He was nearly killed last time, and he doubted that Dr. Mallard was willing to risk that again.

"Oh, right," Palmer said as he began to wrap the body up in a body bag and load him onto the gurney. Tony stood around impatiently, adding things to his sketch and tapping his fingers against trees. _Lucky McGee and Ziva, they got to go to the new crime scene while I'm stuck here with Palmer _Tony thought with a sigh as he wondered over to another patch of grass, looking at it thought fully.

*******************************************************************************

She was growing impatient. When was that other man going to leave? Maybe he was an accomplice? No, impossible. That other man who was walking away from her Johnny was him. Or was it?

*******************************************************************************

"Hey Palmer," Tony said, "I'm going to go use the head, I'll be right back."

"Okay Tony," Palmer said, distractedly. Tony shrugged and walked off towards the bathroom a short distance away.

*****************************************************************************

She could not believe her luck! The other man was finally gone. Quickly, she took the revolver out from her bag, and slowly crept towards him.

*****************************************************************************

Palmer was just pushing the gurney when he heard the crunching of leaves coming towards him.

"Tony, is that you?" He asked.

"Who's Tony?" He heard a female voice talking. Palmer spun around to see a young woman standing there.

"Uh… sorry miss I thought you were someone else," Palmer said, apologetically.

"No need to be sorry," the woman said.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but this is a crime scene, you can't be here," Palmer said.

"Is Johnny in there?" She asked, looking at the body bag. Palmer gave her a strange look.

"Did you know Lt. Jonathon Reed?" Jimmy asked.

"Johnny," she said.

"There's no Johnny here," he tried to explain.

"No, that's Johnny," she said, anger rising in her voice, "you killed him."

"What? No, ma'am I didn't-"

"Yes you did!" She said, now screaming. Then a sick smile grew on her face, "you did kill him. Now you're going to pay."

"What?" Palmer asked. Then his worst nightmare happened. The woman reached into her pocket, revealing a gun. Jimmy was begging for her to listen to him, but she just smiled.

"You're going to pay," she said, and laughter erupted from her mouth as she pulled the trigger. Jimmy heard a sickening crack, and searing pain shoot through the left side of his body. He felt warm blood start to seep through his clothes and onto the ground. He fell backwards, crashing into the gurney and sending Lt. Reed to the ground. The last thing he remembered was the woman shouting "sweet revenge," and running off into the woods, and Tony yelling as he fell into unconsciousness.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

_It's all my fault! Why the hell did I leave Palmer there in an area of a double homicide? Why did I leave him when I promised Ducky I wouldn't? _Tony thought as ran towards Jimmy's still form lying in the dirt. He had seen the gunman, or gun_woman_, run into the woods, screaming and cackling as Palmer lie there, bleeding. _Oh god, Palmer, you have to be alright. C'mon Palmer, wake up!_

****************************************************************************

Gibbs heard the shot go off from the other crime scene. He had been talking to Ducky about the time of death for the second victim when he heard it.

"Did you hear that, Duck?" Gibbs asked.

"Hear what Jethro?" Ducky asked.

"Damn it! McGee! Ziva! You're with me! Ducky, stay here with the body and Metro," Gibbs ordered as he drew his weapon and ran towards the first crime scene.

"What is it Jethro?" Ducky called after him.

"I know that noise anywhere. That was a gunshot," Gibbs said as he and the rest of his team left, leaving a very confused medical examiner in the dust.

****************************************************************************

"Come on Palmer, come on Palmer," Tony said as he performed CPR on the still unconscious man as he waited for the EMT's to arrive. Tony put more pressure on the wound, praying for the bleeding to stop. The bullet had dug itself into the area around his collar bone, a little to the right of the left shoulder. Tony had a sick feeling in his stomach as blood began to pool around Palmer. _Damn it! _Tony thought as he ripped a piece of his shirt off and used it as another cloth to stop the bleeding. _Damn it, where the hell is Gibbs? _Tony felt guilt begin to rise in his stomach. If he had stayed, then Palmer wouldn't have gotten hurt. Tony shut his eyes. He muttered something under his breath that Gibbs would have slapped him on the back of the head for.

"I'm sorry Palmer."

***************************************************************************

When Gibbs finally reached the crime scene, he was shocked.

"DINOZZO, WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?" Gibbs asked, yelling as he ran over to his senior field agent's side.

"I left him," Tony whispered.

"What?" Gibbs asked.

"I left him, Gibbs. I let Ducky down. I went to go use the head. I was only gone for a minute, and when I was walking back, I heard a shot go off. I ran as fast as I could, but the bitch had already ran… and Palmer was just lying here," Tony said, the guilt and sadness obvious in his voice.

"Did you call an ambulance?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah, they should be here soon."

"Did you see who shot him?" Ziva asked. Tony then gave her the 'shut the hell up David' look and she fell silent. Metro Police then flooded the scene, shouting things and barking orders. Gibbs looked up to see two men towing a body behind them, followed be the one man Gibbs wished was not here right now.

"Jethro, what happened?" Ducky asked, worried. The old man then looked at the ground, "Jimmy!"

"Easy Duck…" Gibbs warned as his old friend rushed over, pushing through a crowd of Metro Police, and to his assistant's side.

"Oh God…" Ducky said, "Is he alright?"

"I don't know Ducky," Gibbs answered truthfully. The ME's face fell.

"Agent Gibbs, the EMT's are here to pick up your wounded agent!" A Metro Officer called as he escorted an EMT team to where Palmer was. They quickly loaded him up on the stretcher and began to return to the ambulance.

"Hey boss," Tony said suddenly.

"Yeah DiNozzo?"

"Can I ride with him?" Tony asked. Ziva and McGee flashed each other looks as Gibbs smiled and said,

"Sure Tony."

"Thanks Boss," Tony said, quickly running after Palmer.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say Tony felt guilty over Palmers injury," Ziva said.

"I think your correct Ziva," Gibbs said, "Now load up the equipment; we got someone in the hospital to visit." Tim and Ziva nodded as they rushed to load up the truck.

"Jethro, could you do me a favor," Ducky said.

"What is it, Duck?" Gibbs asked.

"Could you find the bastard responsible and shoot them for me?" Ducky asked.

"Sure thing Ducky, that's what I was going to do anyway," Gibbs said with a smile as he walked away to help the remainder of his team with picking up the crime scene.


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Tony never liked hospitals, ever since he had contracted pneumonic plague and since his relationship with Jeanne ended. Tony ran alongside Palmer on the way to surgery when his Doctor, Arnold Dunning, stopped him.

"Agent DiNozzo I cannot permit you to enter surgery. I'm sorry but you're going to have to wait out here," the Doctor said.

"But-"Tony said.

"No buts Agent DiNozzo! Wait-out-here," Dr. Dunning yelled as he slammed the door on Tony's face. Tony put his back to the wall, and slid down it, holding his face in his hands.

"It's all my fault Palmer, I'm sorry," Tony whispered as a tear ran down his face.

**************************************************************************

"But Boss," McGee said as they rode towards Bethesda Hospital in downtown Washington D.C.

"But nothing McGee that was an order," Gibbs said as he rocketed down the highway.

"Yes Boss," McGee said as he took out his cell phone and dialed NCIS head quarters.

**************************************************************************

Forensic Expert Abigail Scioto sat in her lab, bored out of heck. Gibbs was late, which was weird since Gibbs was never late. It wasn't like Gibbs to be late. Abby sighed, sitting back in her chair. Then, her phone rang. She ran to her phone and answered eagerly,

"Forensic Specialist Abigail Scioto how may I help you?"

"Hey Abby, its McGee," Tim said over the phone.

"Timmy, where have you been? I've been worried sick!" She said.

"Listen Abb-"

"No you listen McGee, Gibbs is late, and he's never late! That's the thing I would expect from Tony!"

"Abby chill-"

"No McGee I will not chill now where are you?" She asked.

"Abby, the reason we're late is that Palmer was hurt at the crime scene. He was shot by an unknown assailant," McGee said calmly. Abby nearly dropped the phone in surprise.

"What? Jimmy? Who?"

"We're on our way to Bethesda right now; do you want to meet us there?" He asked.

"Yes of course! I'll be right there!" Abby said, hanging up and rushing to get her coat. She leapt out into the hallway, nearly knocking over the mail boy, and raced out the door.

*************************************************************************

Tony sat there in the waiting room, impatient. Palmer had been in surgery for an hour and the Doctor had not said a word about how Jimmy was doing. He figured Gibbs would be here soon, arriving all of the sudden with McGee, Ziva, Ducky and most likely Abby on his heels. But he was wrong.

"Tony!" He heard a female voice shriek as all of the sudden someone embraced him in a hug.

"Hey Abbs," Tony barely managed to get out with his lungs being actively crushed.

"Omi gosh are you okay? McGee called saying Palmer had been hurt and that he was here and the nice nurse pointed me to here and said you were in here and… Tony!" She said as she yet again hugged him.

"Easy there Abby," Tony said, "You're crushing me."

"Sorry," she apologized hastily.

"Where's Gibbs?" Tony asked.

"Right here DiNozzo," the familiar unexpected entrance no longer surprised Tony for over the years, he had gotten somewhat used to it. "How's Palmer?" Gibbs asked.

"He's still in surgery," Tony reported. Gibbs frowned slightly.

"Agent DiNozzo," the voice of Dr. Dunning drifted into the waiting room. The short man entered, looked at Gibbs, and turned back to Tony. "Mr. Palmer took a single round to his far left shoulder," the Doctor said, indicating with his right hand the exact spot, "He lost a lot of blood, but as far as I can tell, he's going to be fine." Abby squealed and jumped up and down with joy. Tony just breathed a sigh of relief.

"Can we go see him?" Tony asked.

"Yes you may, he should be awake now," Dr. Dunning said, gesturing for them to follow. He lead them up a flight of stairs and to the far right corner of the hospital. When they reached room 253, the Doctor stopped and opened the door.

**************************************************************

Palmer blinked once, trying to clear his vision. His whole body hurt like hell, especially his shoulder. He realized at once that he was in the hospital. He lifted a hand to his face and felt an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth. He knew without looking that there was an IV attached to him as well. He looked straight ahead of him and saw the door open and a screaming Abby running at him.

"Jimmy, you're okay!" Abby said excitedly, hugging him. He winced and Abby let go. She had a huge grin on her face.

"Welcome back Palmer," Tony said with a smile as entered right behind Abby. On the back of his mind however was the nagging voice saying over and over again _it's all your fault he's like this._

_It's all your fault._


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

_It's all your fault DiNozzo, _the voice said at the back of his head. All Tony could do was feel guilt for Jimmy's injury. The only lead they had were the slugs from the two marines. According to Ducky, the slugs were different, suggesting that there were two different shooters. Gibbs, Ziva, McGee, Ducky and Abby had left an hour before. Tony had asked Gibbs, and Dr. Dunning, if he could stay with Palmer longer. The doctor was hesitant at first, but Gibbs convinced him to give in. The doctor had let him stay an extra two hours.

_It's all your fault. _He couldn't get rid of the feeling that the reason that Palmer was hurt was because of him. If he hadn't left…

"Tony?"

"Yeah Palmer?"

"You okay?" He asked.

"I'm not the one who's in the hospital room."

"Right," Palmer said, staring out the window, "What's wrong Tony?"

"Nothing," Tony lied.

"Are you sure?"

"It's my fault," Tony whispered.

"What?"

"It's my fault you got hurt, Palmer," Tony said, louder this time.

"No it-"

"Yes it is Palmer," Tony said, "if I hadn't left you, then that lady wouldn't have hurt you."

"Tony, really-"

"It's all my fault," Tony said, "I'm sorry Palmer."

"There's nothing to be sorry about…" Jimmy said.

"It's my fault Jimmy," Tony said, turning to leave.

"It's not your fault," Palmer whispered, watching DiNozzo leave, letting his words hand in the air.

*******************************************************************

She watched him leave. Her eyes narrowed as she looked through the binoculars. The man looked tired, weak. She could tell just by looking at him that he was worried about the killer, that bastard who killed Johnny. She saw the second accomplice go to his car, and slowly move towards her. She pulled her gun out and pointed it towards the man. She smiled as she pulled the trigger.

*******************************************************************

Tony felt the first bullet whiz past his head. Glass flew everywhere, one big piece cut into his shoulder. _Damn it! _Tony thought. Another bullet drove itself into the passenger door. The last one entered the tire and Tony lost control of the car. He tried to get control again, but failed. He heard a bang as he hit a lamppost in the middle of the parking lot. He felt his head hit the airbag and he lost consciousness.

******************************************************************

For the past two hours, Gibbs had been examining the autopsy report, checking in on Abby, and talking to Metro Police who were nearby when Palmer was shot. There was still nothing. It was making Gibbs really mad.

"Gibbs, I got something!" Ziva said excitedly as she jumped from her desk and ran over to Gibbs.

"It better be good, David," Gibbs said.

"It turns out that our deceased marine had a romantic interest," Ziva said with a smile.

"So?" Gibbs said.

"Well according to Metro Police reports, His wife Cameron Reed was so distraught over her husbands murder that officers had to escort her off of the crime scene."

"And?"

"She swore revenge on the person who did this to her husband."

"How does this help Ziva?"

"We may have a possible murderer of our second victims, and Jimmy's shooter," Ziva said with a smile.

"Anything on the second victim?" Gibbs asked.

"Yes, our second victim is Petty Officer Ronald Zachery, age 25, and according to Norfolk he was set to deploy next week."

"Why was he in the state park?" Immediately after he asked, Tim hung up his phone and ran over to his boss.

"Boss, I just spoke to a commanding officer at Norfolk and he said that the two victims were in the same unit," McGee said.

"Why was he in the middle of the woods?" Gibbs asked.

"Because he usually took runs on some of the trails, that's probably why he was in the park," McGee said.

"Anything else?" Gibbs asked.

"Uh… no," McGee said. Gibbs frowned and walked away from the junior agents desk. Gibbs's phone rang, and he turned to answer it.

"Gibbs," he answered.

"Gibbs I got something!" Abby yelled over the reciver.

"I'm on my way," Gibbs said, making his way to the elevator, "Ziva you're with me. McGee call Tony, and tell him to get his ass here," he said as Ziva ran into the elevator with him and the doors closed.

**************************************************************

"What do ya' got Abbs?" Gibbs asked as he and Ziva entered the forensic lab.

"Well Gibbs, I found out who shot Palmer. You see, the same slug that killed our second victim is from the same one that hit Palmer." Abby said.

"That doesn't tell us who shot Jimmy," Ziva pointed out.

"Yes it totally does! The gun where this slug came from is licensed to…" Abby was about to say when Gibbs's cell phone rang.

"Gibbs," he said. His face immediately fell. He nodded and hung up the phone.

"What is it?" Ziva asked.

"Get you're gear, we're heading to Bethesda," Gibbs said, "there was shooting."

"What happened?" Ziva asked, worried. Abby gasped.

"DiNozzo happened," Gibbs said as he walked out of the lab with Ziva at his heels.


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

"Uh, boss, could you slow down a little?" McGee asked as Gibbs rocketed down the highway towards Bethesda. Even Ziva, who was a crazy driver herself, felt a little sick to the stomach. Gibbs ignored Tim's question as he avoided yet another car in front of him. According to a phone call from Dr. Dunning, a person leaving the hospital had seen the wreaked car and ran back inside to tell him. The doctor had also said that Tony's injuries were minor and that he was waiting for them in Palmer's room. _Why was it always Tony? _

*****************************************************************

Anthony asked himself the same question. He had the worst luck when it came to being hurt, but in a way he was lucky because he always survived. He had been blown up twice, kidnapped, contracted the plague, been locked in a box, nearly hit by a car proceeded by dangling off of a car ramp six stories high, attacked by crazy people, hit on the head with various objects, and shot at. Tony sighed, _why him? _His arm hurt from where the glass had scratch his shoulder, and his head ached from impact of the airbag. The doctor said he had a slight concussion and that he was going to be fine. He suddenly remembered something and leapt from the chair next to Palmer's bed and ran out the door, nearly knocking over Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

"Hey Boss, I was just about to call you," Tony said.

"DiNozzo, what the hell happened to you?" Gibbs asked.

"Later Boss," Tony said, attempting to move around Gibbs.

"What is so damn important?" Gibbs asked, anger rising.

"I know who shot Palmer," Tony said seriously.

"How do you know that?" Gibbs asked.

"Because she was the same person who tried to kill me," Tony said. At that moment, Gibbs's phone rang.

"Gibbs."

"Gibbs! Is Tony okay?" Abby said.

"He's fine Abbs," Gibbs said.

"Good, but that's not the reason I called you," Abby said, the excitement in her voice obvious.

"Is it about who the shooter was?"

"Yes! You never gave me a chance to tell you!"

"Who is it them Abby?"

"The gun is licensed to our first victim-"

"He couldn't have done it Abbs, he was dead."

"You didn't let me finish! The gun is licensed to Lt. Reed, but the finger prints from the shells don't match. The person who shot Jimmy is Cameron Reed, aka, Lt. Reed's wife," Abby said happily.

"She killed her husband?" Gibbs asked.

"No, she killed Petty Officer Zachery; a different guy killed Lt. Reed."

"Who is that, Abbs?"

"One Doctor Arnold Dunning," Abby said.

"That's good work Abby. Remind me to give you a Caf-Pow when we get back."

"Thanks Gibbs!" Abby said as he hung up the phone.

"McGee alert staff to not let Doctor Dunning leave the building. Ziva, you're with me. DiNozzo you stay with Palmer in case Dunning wants to pay him a visit," Gibbs ordered as he ran out of the room, followed by Ziva and Tim as he raced down the hallway, ready to shoot that bastard who caused all this.

**************************************************************

Cameron Reed walked cautiously through the halls of the hospital, watching for the room where that bastard was. Why didn't they see that he was a murderer? But it didn't matter, soon he would be dead, and her husband avenged. She nearly screamed as she saw the grey haired man running at her, followed by the Israeli woman. Cameron quickly ducked into the bathroom next to her. As soon as she was sure they were gone, she resumed her perch, eager to finish what she started.

*************************************************************

"What is a five letter word for utter joy?" Tony asked.

"Happy," Jimmy said.

"What is a seven letter word for the feeling when someone has done something bad to you and you want to get even with them?"

"Revenge," Palmer said, growing bored as DiNozzo kept on asking him crossword questions.

"Thanks," Tony said, writing it down.

"___ victory, the song by Van Halen," Tony continued.

"Sweet Victory," Palmer said.

"When did you get so good at crossword puzzles?"

"Tony that was one of the easiest crossword's ever."

"Well that makes me feel so much better for not knowing the answers."

"Sorry…"

"Saying sorry is a sign of weakness Palmer."

Jimmy sighed. "I won't do it again DiNozzo." Tony smiled. All of the sudden, the door was kicked in. Jimmy nearly screamed as the same woman who had nearly killed him burst through the door, pointing her gun at him.

"Nice to see you again you bastard," Cameron Reed said through gritted teeth.


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Ziva and Gibbs ran through the halls of Bethesda, asking any doctors they bumped into if they had seen Dr. Dunning.

"Sorry, haven't seen him," the last three had said, looking scared as they ran off to do something else.

"Gibbs, this is a waste of time," Ziva finally said after what felt like hours of searching.

"Well, David, can you think of another way to find him?!" Gibbs said exasperation in his voice. Ziva said nothing and continued to ask the random hospital personal about Arnold.

"Gibbs!" Ziva called, "this one's seen him!" Gibbs ran over to the now frighten intern.

"Where did you see him?" Gibbs asked.

"He was heading to a patients room, a… a… Jimmy Palmer, sir," the intern said, stuttering.

"When did you see him?" Gibbs asked.

"Just now, before you guys turned up," he said.

"Let's move, Ziva!" Gibbs yelled, "And call McGee too!" He added, charging up the stairs. _God, I hope I'm not too late!_

****************************************************************

"Cameron Reed I presume?" Tony asked using a small British accent.

"You guessed right," she said, still not taking the gun off of Palmer.

"Ms. Reed, I know that you've had some bad things happen to you over the past couple of days, but you need to put the gun down," Tony said quietly.

"No," she said, "no."

"Put it down," Tony said.

"No. That bastard your protecting killed my husband!" She screamed.

"No he didn't. Palmer doesn't have the guts to stare down Probie let alone kill someone."

"Thanks Tony," Jimmy mumbled.

"I saw him do it. He lured my husband out from the base and then shot him," she said, tears pouring down her face.

"No one trusts Jimmy with a gun, I don't think he even trusts himself with one."

"Not helping DiNozzo," Jimmy mumbled again.

"He killed him, and you and that other man did!"

"Petty Officer Zachery," Tony said, "didn't kill him either."

"Zachery was always jealous of Johnny, he hated him. And you decided to help him," she said.

"You can get out of this Cameron. If they find you, they will kill you," Tony said.

"You killed him," she said.

"Neither of us did," Tony said.

"You killed him!" She screamed, squeezing the trigger. There was a loud bang, and Cameron Reed fell to the floor, a gunshot in her heart.

"They were telling the truth, Cameron, you should have listened. They didn't kill your Johnny," the man said, hidden by the shadow. As soon as he stepped into the light, Jimmy gasped. "I did," Arnold Dunning said a horrible smile on his face.

********************************************************************

Gibbs, McGee, and Ziva all raced up towards the third floor where the intern had said he had seen Dr. Dunning go. Gibbs was pissed and worried. Tony always happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. He didn't even think about Palmer, already knowing that he was most likely freaking out.

As they rounded the corner, they heard a gunshot, and Gibbs expected the worst. _Damn it, I hope we're not too late. _

*******************************************************************

Tony cursed. He knew Dr. Dunning had a secret the whole time, and he hadn't had a second thought about it. Now the person who was supposed to be saving lives was about to kill them. _This is actually kind of ironic_ Tony thought to himself.

"Dr…..Dr…... Dunning… what-what are you doing?" Palmer asked, horrified. He had just witnessed his first murder; someone had just died right in front of him. He thought he was going to be sick.

"Well Mr. Palmer, I'm completing my revenge," the doctor explained.

"What did the Reed's do to you that would make you want to kill them?" Palmer asked.

"Mr. Reed killed my boy," Dr. Dunning said sadly, "my son was on the same team as Reed and Zachery. There was a terrorist that was threatening the town that they were in. They had a bomb. Reed let him disarm it. It exploded, killing him instantly. He was only 20 years old." The doctor looked like he was going to cry.

"that's not Reed's fault," Tony said.

"He sent him to his death," Dr. Dunning said.

"He had no idea that the bomb was going to go off, no one did!" Tony yelled.

"My only son was killed because of him! It was his fault! So I killed him, and I was about to kill the wife too before she went insane and ran off! So I followed her, watched her. When I heard that she had mistaken me for that boy I had a stroke of luck. But thanks to you Agent DiNozzo, the boy did not die in my place, so you were hurt, and I had to kill her."

"You're insane."

"That maybe so, Tony, but you are about to die, so I guess I prefer being insane," the doctor said, aiming the gun at Tony, and firing.


	9. Chapter 8 Epilogue

**Chapter Eight**

Gibbs's heart fell as he heard two more shots. He heard a crash of someone falling, and feared the worst. Gibbs held his hand up once they reached the door to Palmer's room, signaling for McGee and Ziva to stop. He made another motion with his hand, and Ziva nodded. Gibbs turned to the doors window, seeing the blood. He paused for only a moment, but shook the feeling off and opened the door slowly. As soon as the door opened, Arnold Dunning fell to the floor, blood pouring from his skull. Gibbs looked into the room to see Cameron Reed lying face down on the floor, dead.

"Hey Boss," he heard his Senior Field agent say happily. Gibbs looked up to see a freaked out Palmer, and Tony holding a gun, still pointed at where Dunning had just been standing.

"You alright DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

"Just peachy Boss," Tony replied.

"What happened?" Tim said looking as astonished as Palmer was at the moment.

"He fired at me and missed, and I noticed Ms. Reed's fallen weapon, I scooped it up and bam! Mr. Dunning was no more!" Tony said, overly pleased with himself.

"That's good work Tony," Gibbs said. "Is Palmer okay?"

"I'm fine, Agent Gibbs," Palmer said. Gibbs glanced at Palmer's heart rate, and laughed.

"You'll get over it Palmer," Gibbs said, turning to leave. Palmer couldn't help but smile as Gibbs walked away. Tony looked at the young Medical Assistant, and smiled too.

****************************************************************

**Epilogue **

Palmer was back at work, and he was happy. Being stuck at the hospital was awful. He had been there for a full month before the hospital staff finally let him go. Every day of that month, Abby came and gave him bone crushing hugs while Tony and Gibbs laughed behind her back. Dr. Mallard also visited, going on and on about his great uncle or something like that before Jimmy either fell asleep, or Ducky left. Ziva and McGee came too, and Palmer was happy that he finally belonged. He felt that after being shot, everyone treated him differently. Jimmy even got over his fear of Gibbs. The one down side is that his arm was still in a sling so Dr. Mallard would not let him from touching anything or helping perform any autopsies, which bugged him a lot. Even so, he was glad he wasn't dead. He stared down at the poor Ms. Reed still sitting in Autopsy. He murmured his respects, and closed the door, shutting her face from his mind. Jimmy walked away, flipping the light switch off as he left.

******************************************************************

_Thanks for reading! I hope you liked it. This was my first fanfic ever so I hoped you enjoyed it! Please write a review because I would love to hear what you think. Thanks to my sister who inspired me to write this! Thanks for reading!_

_Yoho81_


End file.
